Temporary restraining order blocks SC voters’ personal info from Trump admin
Whether sending state voter rolls to the U.S. Department of Justice harms South Carolinians’ privacy is the question playing out in state court.
The Justice Department demanded the personal information of South Carolina’s 3.3 million voters, including partial Social Security numbers, from the state Election Commission earlier this summer. After several extensions, the election commission was given a Sept. 5 deadline to comply.
But a temporary restraining order from the First Judicial Circuit Court may keep the voter rolls in the state, for now. The state court said the election commission could not send the voter rolls to the Trump administration until a hearing is held.
The hearing is scheduled at 10 a.m. Wednesday, Sept. 10 in Aiken.
The Trump administration requested voter rolls from several states, including South Carolina, to enforce national voting registration law, according to an email from the Department of Justice to the state election commission. The requested information includes full names, dates of births, home addresses and the last four digits of Social Security numbers or state drivers’ license numbers of registered voters.
The South Carolina Election Commission had asked for several extensions to ensure that the request complied with state and federal privacy laws.
Attorneys Brad Hutto, who is a state senator representing Orangeburg, and Skyler Hutto filed a lawsuit Thursday requesting the restraining order on behalf of plaintiff Anne Crook, a Calhoun County registered voter. The complaint argued that sending the personal information to the Justice Department would violate the state constitution’s right to privacy and the state Family Privacy Protection Act of 2002.
The state court issued a temporary restraining order Tuesday.
“The Court finds that there is a likelihood that immediate and irreparable damage will result to Plaintiff if her personal information data is released in violation of her right to privacy,” said the restraining order signed by Judge Diane S. Goodstein.
The state election commission will continue coordinating with the Justice Department, said John Catalano, the director of external affairs at the election commission, in an email to The State.
Spokespersons for Gov. Henry McMaster and Attorney General Alan Wilson said last Friday they did not oppose the South Carolina Election Commission sending voter rolls with personal information to the Trump administration.
This story was originally published September 3, 2025 at 2:52 PM.